Do You Know Where Your Heart Is
by DiBye
Summary: He wasn’t perfect. He wasn’t even close. But he was there, and he was there for her. That was enough. Tyler/Caroline ONESHOT


Authors Note: This is my first Vampire Diaries fic. It's just a one shot about what could have happened if Tyler had been Caroline's fill in escort. Enjoy and review.

**Do You Know Where Your Heart Is?**

_Do you know where your heart is?  
__Do you think you can find it?  
Or did you trade it for something,  
Somewhere better just to have it?_

Caroline Forbes was a pretty girl. She was smart, convincing, caring, and even funny. But above all else, she was a pretty girl. She hated that label… pretty. It reeked of mediocrity. And no matter how hard she tried to shake that imagine, the image of simply being pretty, it seemed as if she never would. People liked pretty things. They were comforting and acceptable. But people didn't fall in love with pretty. And Matt Donovan was not in love with Caroline.

She had tried her best to be there for him after news of Vicky's death surfaced. But she was caught in a web of uncertainty. If she hovered too close, she'd smother him and he'd resent her. But if she let him push her away then he might feel like she didn't care. She didn't know what to do. And so she did what she did best, she smiled her best smile.

As the days wore on, Matt pulled away more and more. She wanted to scream, to cry, to slap him and demand that he pay attention to her. She wanted to demand that he love her. But she couldn't. He would look at her with those puppy dog eyes and that sad half smile and she would melt. He had been through so much and she couldn't ask anything of him.

"Bonnie was a surprisingly good dance partner." Caroline giggled over the phone. She had just finished dance practice and was leaning against her locker at school. The halls were empty and dim, the sound of her soft voice echoed.

"Oh yeah?" Matt answered. Though she couldn't see him, she could tell that he was distracted.

"You have a lot to live up to Mr. Donovan." She teased. She could almost see him rolling his eyes over the phone. Her smile dropped when he didn't respond after a moment. "Matt, are you still there?" She asked.

"Yeah, it's just… I don't know how to tell you this Care." He began. She felt her eyes begin to sting. She knew what was coming.

"What is it?" She tried her best to sound casual.

"I have to work the night of the pageant. I'm sorry, I know it means a lot to you. But things are tight at home and I just can't…" He trailed off. She swallowed hard and slid to the ground. Letting her head fall back against the lockers, she shut her eyes tightly.

"Don't worry about it. I totally understand." She forced herself to say.

"Are you sure? I really am sorry." He continued to apologize. She wanted to hang up. She wanted to throw something, to scream. But instead she continued to comfort him. She continued to be the perfect girlfriend.

"It's no big deal. It's not like I'm even going to win." She laughed. It came out more hollow than she had intended.

"Hey, you could win." He tried to encourage her. But somehow, it only made her feel worst.

"Whatever, it doesn't matter." She dismissed. "Look I gotta go, Bonnie's waiting for me." She lied. Bonnie had left ten minutes ago.

"Okay, I'll talk to you later." He said. She quickly said goodbye and closed her phone carefully. She set it down next to her and let her head fall into her hands. As much as she wanted to cry, no tears came. The shallow sound of her breathing was the only noise to be heard.

_Do you know where your love is?  
Do you think that you lost it?  
You felt it so strong but,  
Nothing's turned out how you wanted._

Soon her breathing was accompanied by the sound of footsteps. They grew louder as the seconds wore on. Caroline knew that she should look up, but she didn't. She just kept on breathing.

"No loitering." A voice sounded. The deep tone and sarcastic quip could mean only one thing.

"Go away Tyler." She snapped, her face still buried in her hands.

"Sorry, I can't. I have an appointment at this locker for this time." He spoke. She felt him come up beside her and slid to the ground. She finally looked up from her hands and saw that he was sitting next to her, a smirk plastered across his face.

"You are so annoying." She muttered.

"And you, are so dramatic. What's got you all emo anyway? Did someone tell you that your shoes don't match your purse?" He responded dryly.

"Why are you even here? Is it just because you take pleasure in pissing me off?" She asked.

"Yeah, I took a special trip over here just for you." He smiled. She glared at him until he relented. "Chill out princess. I had to drop off some paper work with the pageant lady for my dad. You know, for the lame pageant you entered." He explained.

"You mean the lame pageant I'm going to be dropping out of." She mumbled.

"What?" He looked over at her sharply. "Why the hell would you drop out? Don't you like, live for this shit?" He asked, looking genuinely curious. She shrugged.

"Come on Caroline, you can't fool me. I've known you since we were kids. You used to make all the girls put on pretend pageants at recess. And you always crowned yourself Ms. Mystic Falls." He chuckled. She smiled slightly at the memory.

"Things change." She replied softly. He continued to stare at her until she sighed and rolled her eyes. "Look, Matt can't escort me because of work and Elena is going to win anyways so it just… it just doesn't matter anymore." She finished. 

_Well, bless my sou  
lYou're a lonely soul  
Cause you won't let go,  
Of anything you hold_

"I'll be your escort." He said after a long moment.

"What?" She exclaimed, looking utterly shocked.

"I'll be your escort." He repeated. She continued to look at him like he had three heads. "What, I can be nice sometimes."

"Tyler… I remember you at recess too. You used to throw things at the kids until they cried." She challenged. He fought back a grin.

"Okay fine, so I'm not the most charitable person. But I need to earn back some points with Matt. Maybe if I do you this favor you can put in a good word for me." He admitted.

"I don't know…" She trailed off.

"Come on, you need an escort and I need my friend back. It's a win, win. Besides, I already know that stupid dance we have to do." He encouraged.

"Oh my god, that's right. You were in that dance class I took in like… fourth grade." She laughed.

"Fifth." He corrected with a grimace. "My dad made me take the lessons. It was the worst five weeks of my life." He complained.

"Your life? I'm sorry, who was the one who's feet were trampled because their partner was a complete klutz." She said poking him in the arm.

"Hey, I was going through a growth sprit. I was a little awkward…" He defended.

"You literally broke one of my toes. I couldn't even participate the last week of class." She reminded. He laughed loudly, not caring that it echoed through the halls.

"Okay, okay… but I swear I won't break anything this time. Let me be your escort and I'll make that missed dance class up to you." He offered.

"You'll be on your best behavior?" She asked skeptically.

"Scouts honor." He smiled.

"Oh great, that's really reassuring Ty…" She muttered, letting her head fall back again. He wasn't perfect. He wasn't even close. But he was there, and he was there for her. That was enough.

_Well, all I need  
Is the air I breathe  
And a place to rest,  
My head_

She hadn't anticipated how nervous she would be. Her skin was humming with anticipation and her hands shook as she put the finishing touches on her makeup. It was show time. She was ready, more than ready. She was going to be amazing out there. But what if she wasn't? What if the judges barley noticed her? What if all she really was, was pretty?

"Do I really have to wear this tie?" A voice sounded from behind her. She looked in the mirror to see Tyler appearing both disheveled and annoying.

"Yes, you have to wear it!" She exclaimed. He rolled his eyes and finished pulling it through the loop. He did it with ease, years of social events evidently paying off.

"I hate these stupid events." He muttered.

"You're the one who practically begged to be my date." She reminded him, standing up and positioning herself in front of him. The other girls had begun to get changed, but Caroline was still perfecting her hair and make-up. Perfect was the goal. Anything less was unacceptable.

"Hey, I don't beg." He stated firmly.

"Whatever, it was your choice to be here." She said, reaching up to adjust his tie. He squirmed a little as her small hands fluttered over his chest. She was standing close to him, close enough for him to feel her hot breath.

"I don't know why your so nervous." He said. She looked up in confusion.

"Who said I was nervous?" She replied.

"I'm not an idiot." He countered. She looked at him doubtfully and he rolled his eyes. "Seriously Cee, you're way prettier than the other girls. And, you have the hottest escort here." He said raising a brow and looking proud. She paused at his declaration of her being the prettiest girl there. Pretty… there was that word again. But somehow, hearing it on Tyler's lips sounded different. Maybe, not quite so bad.

"Just don't let me trip or anything." She finally said, smoothing down his tie one final time.

"No worries, I got your back." He smiled. And for some insane reason, she believed him.

_Do you know what your fate is?  
And are you trying to shake it?  
You're doing your best and  
Your best look  
You're praying that you make it_

She had won. She had actually won. Ever since that cliché sash had been placed across her chest, the grin on her face had been unwavering. Caroline had finally done something right. She looked around her and saw Tyler clapping, he didn't even bother to hide his smirk. She could practically hear him telling her 'I told you so'. She rolled her eyes at him and kept on grinning.

Ten minutes later she found that her smile had faltered. It was still there, plastered across her face with ease. But she didn't mean it anymore. She didn't feel it.

"Well, if it isn't Miss Mystic Falls." Tyler chimed as he joined her outside.

People were beginning to find their cars and head home. Her friends had disappeared almost immediately after she won. And her mother was off saving the world or something. Either way she had found herself alone. And that's when it had hit her. Winning the pageant didn't mean a thing. It didn't change a thing. She would still always be the pretty girl with unimportant things to say. She was disposable to the people in her life. Completely and utterly disposable.

"Hey." She replied, throwing him a weak smile. His brow furrowed as he moved to stand next to her.

"What's the matter. Is the spotlight not all it's cracked up to be?" He teased, bumping his shoulder with hers.

"All of this…It just, doesn't seem as important as it used to." She admitted. He looked at her for a long moment before speaking softly.

"Matt's an idiot." He replied, barley above a whisper. She looked up at him, startled. "You think I haven't seen the two of you together? The way he treats you?" He continued.

"He's just going through a lot right now." She said, repeating the words she had told herself so many times. Words that had begun to hold less and less weight.

"It was happening even before he knew Vicky was dead." Tyler snapped, looking annoying. He was annoyed with Matt for treating her like crap. He was annoyed with her for letting herself be treated that way. And he was annoyed with himself for caring so much.

"Matt cares about me more than any guy ever has." She defended. He shook his head in frustration.

"Matt's my friend, or at least he was my friend. But I've known you since we were kids. And the Caroline Forbes that I knew wouldn't let some guy treat her like second best. The Caroline I knew crowned herself queen of Mystic Falls at the age of eight. I never thought I'd see the day you let someone take that crown from you, not with out a fight." He finished. She wanted to look away from him, but she couldn't. She found herself trapped in the depths of his brown orbs. He was right, he was right about everything.

_Do you know where the end is  
Do you think you can see it?  
Well, until you get there  
Go on, go ahead and scream it  
Just say it…_

"Matt was the first boy who ever… Tyler when I was with him, I felt like I could breath." She tried to explain, ignoring the tears that swam in her eyes.

"If some sappy metaphor about breathing is the best you can do, then save your breath." He fired back, looking away from her.

"I can't leave him, not now." She was grasping at straws.

"Does he even need you?" He questioned, sounding harsher than he had intended. "Does he really need you? Because I don't think he does. I think he wouldn't give a damn if you were to disappear."

"Shut up!" She raised her voice and choked on tears.

"What the hell are you doing to yourself Caroline?" He exclaimed, grabbing her arm and making her face him. "This isn't you. You're better than this." He told her. She let out a dry sob and covered her mouth with a shaking hand.

"No, I'm not. I'm really not. Elena and Bonnie, those are the kind of girls that deserve to be loved. Not me. I'm just the pretty girl. I just… I don't deserve anything." She cried. Tyler gently pulled her shaking body into his arms. He let her head fall against his shoulder and he felt her wet tears soak through his clothes.

"You deserve to be loved." He whispered into her hair. And for some insane reason, she believed him.

**00000 00000 00000**


End file.
